Selection Sunday: Winners and Losers

Kentucky is the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament.

That's about the only thing everyone will agree on when discussing the results of Selection Sunday, with the committee always falling under heavy scrutiny. 

Whether it's due to over-rating, under-rating, favorable travel or just dumb luck of the draw, a handful of teams can cry foul as Selection Sunday losers while a handful of others, though they may not admit it freely, find themselves the beneficiaries of good fortune.

Here are the primary winners and losers of Sunday's NCAA tournament bracket revelation.

Winners

UCLA: The biggest surprise to make the field, the Bruins not only snuck in but avoided the play-in game. For a team that went 2-8 against top-50 teams and went 4-12 on the road or on neutral courts, that's a miracle. That they also happen to be good enough to beat SMU speaks to why, but they're incredibly lucky they'd be able to reach the Round of 32 with just a single victory.

Big 12: Seven of the 10 teams in the conference made the tournament, including two who went below-.500 in conference play. That's a lot of respect, and it comes with a No. 2, three No. 3s, a No. 5 and two bubble-ish teams who didn't wind up all that close to the bubble, after all.

Baylor: Hardly a top-15 team in terms of numbers, the Bears not only get a three-seed but draw a nonthreatening low-seed in Georgia State in the first round. From there, they would draw Xavier or a tired play-in winner, not exactly a tough road to the Sweet Sixteen. Not that anyone should be arguing considering they play a fun brand of basketball.

Maryland: The Terrapins do not deserve a four-seed. Full stop. Drawing into Kentucky's corner of the Midwest Region isn't enough to call them losers, as they're actually prime candidates to miss the Sweet Sixteen altogether. They are where they are based on an 11-1 record in close games, something that's tough to believe is sustainable, especially as the quality of competition rises.

Losers

Wichita State: Indiana may not be the worst round-one draw but Kansas beckons after that, and the Shockers are far better than the No. 7-seed they received. This team probably should have been a four- or five-seed, but instead they'll need to upset the Jayhawks to reach a Sweet Sixteen berth that seemed far more likely a few hours ago.

Utah: The No. 8 team in the country by the KenPom rankings and probably a top-15 team on talent, the Utes draw a very tough 12-seed in Stephen F. Austin. Their region is also filled with teams that can score in a hurry, something their grind-it-out style may not agree with.

North Carolina: For a team that nearly won the ACC, a four-seed is fine for the Tarheels but their path to the Sweet Sixteen decidedly is not. Harvard could be a tough out and then the winner of an intriguing Wofford-Arkansas match-up beckons.

Outside looking in: Florida was the highest-ranked team by the KenPom rankings to not make the tournament ... Murray State lost the Ohio Valley final by a single point and couldn't secure an at-large ... Temple, Colorado State, Old Dominion and Richmond were the first four out.

A little of both

Dayton: They probably deserved a little better than the play-in game as the tournament's final at-large bid, but said play-in game takes place at home for the Flyers. 

Arizona: Possibly the second-best team in the country, the committee ranked the Wildcats sixth overall and gave them a two-seed. But a No. 2 seed in their home region with the weakest No. 1 in their way is tough to get too upset about. There's also not a major threat in their way until the Elite Eight.

Indiana: They're over-seeded, having surprisingly avoided the play-in game, which might stand as a victory if the Hoosiers weren't matched up with Wichita State (see above). They're a fun, high-variance team but one that's likely only getting a single game this year.

Texas: Thought to be a bit of a bubble team based on poor performance against elite teams (they went 3-12 against top-50 opponents), you could argue that the Longhorns avoiding the play-in game was lucky. At the same time, they have loads of talent, advanced metrics love them and they're probably better than round one opponent Butler.